This application claims priority to Japanese Patent Application No. P2000-321920.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to interpretation services, and, more particularly, to a method and an apparatus for interpretation service enabling speech inputted by a user of a telephone to be converted into a foreign language and outputted in the translated form.
2. Description of the Related Art
Persons travelling abroad, or otherwise in need of an oral interpretation service, are often in need of an immediate response to speech in a face-to-face situation. However, in interpretation systems using optional speech recognition, the absence of limitations on the content of the speech, meaning the absence of limitations on the acceptable words to be spoken, often gives rise to extremely frequent errors in recognition, which hampers prompt and/or correct responses. Furthermore, when the speech is to be translated from any input language into a foreign language, mistranslation is also frequent.
For a speech input system involving a closed universe of interpretation, meaning that the required contents of the speech are known in advance, techniques are available that recognize typical expressions with high accuracy, due to the limited universe of words necessary for inclusion in the knowledge base. This limited universe leads to a increase in the predictability of the contents of the speech, and a correspondent increase in the accuracy of speech recognition. Where a closed universe recognition technique for typical spoken sentences limited to particular contents is used as an interpretation service, the difficulties of incorrect recognition and/or translation will be partially solved, but a new difficulty arises in that the statement that the user needs to have translated may not registered or known, and consequently that statement cannot be effectively translated.
Japanese Patent Application No. 65424/1997 discloses one example of a speech interpretation system using a speech recognition server and a radio mobile terminal. This speech interpretation system recognizes speech input through a telephone, converts it into a foreign language and outputs it in the translated form by using an optional speech recognition technique with no limitation on the contents of speech. However, this technique is subject to the same limitations discussed hereinabove.
Therefore, the need exists for an interpretation service that allows the user access to a plurality of translatable phrases, thereby increasing the probability that the statement will be recognized by the interpretation service, while increasing the likelihood that a particular phrase necessary to the user will be found in the universe of translatable phrases.
The present invention is directed to a method of providing an interpretation service. The method includes the steps of receiving an incoming telephone call from a user, forming a plurality of databases, wherein the plurality of databases includes at least one sentence registered to individual user, receiving at least one user information item via the incoming telephone call, searching at least one of the plurality of databases for at least one sentence correspondent to the at least one information item, outputting, according the step of searching, a translation, from at least one of the plurality of databases, of the at least one sentence correspondent to the at least one information item, and outputting, in audio on the incoming telephone call, the translation of the at least one sentence correspondent to the at least one information item.
The method may additionally include the steps of registering the user to access at least one of the at least one sentences registered to individual user database, and authorizing the user to access the at least one sentences registered to individual user database correspondent to that user. This authorization may be performed by identifying the user by a telephone number on caller identification, a telephone push button username, a username spoken by the user, a telephone push button password, or a password spoken by the user, for example.
The method may additionally include the steps of receiving a registered sentence manipulation command from the user, and manipulating the at least one sentence registered to the individual user, according to the registered sentence manipulation command from the user. This receiving may be via an email, a browser connection, or the incoming telephone call. The manipulating may include adding a new sentence to the at least one sentences registered to individual user database correspondent to the user, deleting a sentence from the at least one sentences registered to individual user database correspondent to the user, or editing a sentence in the at least one sentences registered to individual user database correspondent to the user. The manipulated sentence may then be registered into that user""s database. Alternatively, prior to registration, a foreign language translation of the manipulated sentence may be outputted, and the user may approve or disapprove the translation. If the user disapproves, the manipulated sentence may be sent to a human translator.
The present invention is also directed to an interpretation service. The invention service includes an interpreter and a registration service. The user may call the interpreter via telephone, and receive a translation of an input sentence. The registration service includes a private information manager that receives an incoming telephone call from a user, wherein the private information manager manages a plurality of databases, wherein the plurality of databases includes at least one database of sentences registered to the individual user. An authentication server preferably identifies the user as a user authorized to access at last one of the registered sentence databases. The registration service receives at least one user information item via the incoming telephone call, and searches at least one of the plurality of databases for at least one sentence correspondent to the at least one information item. The registration service outputs a translation, from at least one of the plurality of databases, the at least one sentence correspondent to the at least one information item, in audio on the incoming telephone call.
The interpretation service may additionally include, among the plurality of databases, a public sentence database, and an additionally registered sentence database. The additional sentence database is preferably accessed through the private information management server via voice, email, or intra/internet, and the additional sentences include new, edited, or deleted sentences for inclusion in the database of registered sentences.
The present invention provides an interpretation service, including a registration service, to access, via telephone, internet, and the like, to create and edit a collection of sentence examples available to that user for translation. This enables the user not only to rely on the interpretation service for a sentence translation, but also ensures an accurate and prompt response while increasing the probability that the statement will be recognized by the interpretation service. Further, using the organization of the present invention, the likelihood is increased that a particular phrase necessary to the user will be found in the universe of translatable phrases.